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Growing in Virtue

 Our culture seems to be drifting further away from good moral values. The farther away our culture drifts, the more it appears that giving into the sinful desires of the flesh is perfectly acceptable. It is easy to lose sight of the fact that moral standards are not determined by society, but rather by our Creator. It is therefore, imperative that Christians not only maintain their moral stance before the world, but that we also continue to grow in virtue.

The question is, “How do we grow in virtue when we are surrounded by a society that clearly does not share the same concern for it that we do?” Let us consider the following.

Immorality is a sin against God. When Joseph was a slave in Egypt, he achieved a high-ranking status with Potiphar. His wife had longing eyes for Joseph. She tried to seduce him on a consistent basis. Joseph responded to her by saying, “Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand. There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:8-9)

It is interesting to point out that Joseph did not view sexual immorality as a sin against Potiphar, but as a sin against God. Whether or not they would be found out was not taken into consideration. The fact is that God would know. That was enough for Joseph to resist the temptation with Potiphar’s wife and maintain his moral integrity.

Heaven is our Ultimate Goal. No one can ever make it to heaven with the stains of sin on their soul. Therefore, sin must be eradicated. The Hebrew writer stated, “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1)

The Christian life is a race that we desire to win. The only way we can win is by enduring to the very end. As the Hebrew writer stated, sin easily ensnares us. We cannot toy with sin. We cannot compromise with sin. Sin must be laid aside if we are to run with endurance and receive our eternal reward.

Even though we are surrounded by a culture that does not share biblical moral values, we can still conduct ourselves as Christians. In fact, we are to be living examples before the world. Remember the words of Paul who wrote, “…that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” (Philippians 2:15)

God bless each of you,

Eric Hicks

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